Page 97 - Lighting Magazine January 2020

of these new duties may – or may not – seem rel- evant to you, but they are now the norm for the client. This transformation will involve redesigning the existing sales and marketing processes and then inventorying the abilities that are already available in-house and those that will become out- side services.
The evaluation process identifies areas of oppor- tunity such as Client Engagement, Omni-Channel Selling, and Building a Showroom Value Story that focuses on the showroom as a service rather than an outlet.
advancing cliEnt EngagEmEnt
The phrase “client engagement” has been well-worn over the last 10 years, and few will take the time to define it in detail. I’d like to express the nuances of
the digital clutter — but if we wait for customers to walk through the door, it’s too late. Sales teams must be monitoring and using digital gateways to reach potential clients. The portal of choice – GOOGLE – brings us to the three most important platforms for reaching showroom clients: Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Each of these platforms is different and should have specific strategies applied to them, yet I see many showrooms using a spray-and-pray marketing campaign across all three with limited engagement.
Think of it this way, how much engagement do you get from a billboard? People drive by and maybe they see it or perhaps they don’t. One thing is for sure: you never know if they comment or like it. This archaic mentality has been the limiting factor in both the showroom’s and salesperson’s reach and
on the mark
what occurs in both digital and in-person client en- gagement, when and where the meeting happens, and why it is a necessary skill. Client engagement is more than a warm welcome, an offered bever- age, and the desire to answer questions in the showroom. These baseline activities have moved from being solely a face-to-face activity to one that includes digital.
Digital engagement begins very early in the sales process, and the best time to initiate is during the client’s discovery phase, which nowadays happens online first. This means we don’t know who is “shop- ping” for our products and services in the past when clients simply walked in.
This change in the shopping process has caused the client to be bombarded with information that is both fact and conjecture. The showroom team must be able to give correct information and cut through
client engagement in the digital world.
What does all this mean to the showroom in
2020? Drop the idea that passive digital impres- sions fueled by friends and employees – or worse, paid followers – is the best way to get customers in the store.
When people are in the digital discovery phase, they appreciate and even want the actions of a “live” showroom and interactive sales force avail- able to help them. That means developing new mindsets, plus training and coaching the sales team to promote their expert status digitally.
Starting thE convErSation
Digital marketing generates engagement. Create content designed around a procedure that touches clients’ hot button issues, drives interactions, and attracts people to your showroom. With all the
“Some 8 in 10 U.S. consumers (82%) say they will continue to buy a brand they trust...”
—2019 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report
January 2020 | enLIGHTenment Magazine 93